Boy Detectives Club
by shuues
Summary: Two years after the Phantom Thieves took the world by storm, a series of murders leaves the police baffled and detectives hunting for information. In order to find the truth and bring the killers to justice, Goro Akechi has to not only face his past, but work alongside someone he'd rather forget. [spoilers for like, all of persona 5]
1. Chapter 1

**oh boy i love spoilers for the ENTIRE GAME, all of PERSONA FIVE from BEGINNING TO END? the ENTIRETY OF PERSONA FIVE A GAME THAT HAS JUST BEEN RECENTLY RELEASED AND SPOILERS WOULD KIND OF REALLY SUCK TO THOSE WHO WOULD NOT LIKE TO BE SPOILED YES THANK YOU? thank you**

also this is a sort of au you'll see in a moment if you're ok with being, you know, _spoiled_

* * *

It had been two years.

Two years since Yaldabaoth, two years since the world nearly came to an end. Two years since he'd nearly died in Shido's palace, two years since he'd all but retired from the public eye.

Life went on. The Phantom Thieves faded into obscurity, but he remained- Goro Akechi, second coming of the detective prince, illegitimate son of Shido, though nobody knew the last bit. He'd become a police detective, planning to lay low for a few years, if only to avoid Shido's remaining supporters. Life went on, there were cases to be solved, and he'd survived- he'd _lived_ \- so of course he had to continue on his own.

He'd graduated at the top of his class. The station took him in the moment he offered. Things were.. Oddly normal, now. There was still crime, a _lot_ of it- Goro could no longer count the number of busts he'd participated in on one hand. But life went on, and so did he.

It had been two years since thinking about the Phantom Thieves, thinking about _Akira_ , about the shadows; sometimes he woke up in a cold sweat, alone, heart beating as he remembered every single mental shut down; the gun in his hand, smoke wafting up from the barrel, black blood oozing from their eyes, Haru Okumura's father collapsing on live television, his _fault_ -

Since surviving, he'd cut off contact with them. Transferred to a different school, tried to forget, tried to _live_. It was cowardly, but what was he expecting? Forgiveness? They'd forgiven him, sure, but that was probably just spur of the moment to give him the will to live. It had worked, but what was he supposed to do- show up at Leblanc after the fact and go _surprise, I'm actually not dead_?

It had been a cowardly move. He was sure they _knew_ he was alive- after all, he'd said a few words about other large cases on television afterwards- but they couldn't contact him. It was fine. He was fine. This was his life, now.

Laptop on his desk, he scrolled down endless headlines- there were strange things rearing their heads again, things the police couldn't track. Not mental shutdowns or psychotic episodes, like before- these were murders, through and through. But there was another piece that the police just couldn't seem to _get,_ things that didn't line up with forensics or anything witnesses gave them; it was odd, there was no suspect, and the police were struggling to come up with answers.

Part of him thought it was something _other_ , something supernatural- another part of him wanted to forget those things altogether.

They'd figured out _some_ things- it was a criminal organization, the members had to be young (going by what little physical descriptions they had- and, at the very least, the fact their killing schedules never clash with school events, which was probably pure coincidence), and they could get in and out of places like.. Phantoms, almost. Nobody knew how they did it. The victims were people who had commit crimes of their own, people who were technically _wrong_ , but they didn't deserve to die, did they?

It was like two years ago- strange cases of people who'd done wrong suddenly changing, but instead of seeing their crimes and repenting, they just.. _Died_. There were rumors of calling cards, but they weren't found at all the scenes of the crimes. It was like a crudely made parody of two years ago, and...

He hated it. He'd been assigned to this case, but he wished he'd turned it down- there was no evidence, no way to _find_ let alone catch the culprits in the act, and he didn't want to confront _them_ for help.

He still had their contact numbers. Help was just a phone call away, wasn't it? A way to end the murders, make Tokyo a little safer for everyone, a way to find justice for those who had already died-

"Akechi? The chief needs you for something."

A voice- one of the older detectives- pulled him out of his reverie. _Oh, right._ They'd mentioned something about another detective coming in to help- someone young, like Goro. Probably some brainy nobody from a rich school, or something along those lines. They'd partnered them up with him- probably to make sure the newcomer was comfortable and ready to work on the case, or something along those lines; Goro nodded, closing his laptop and pushing in his chair.

The walk to the police chief's office was short, giving him little time to think. The glass dividing the office from the rest of the building was frosted, so all he could make out were the silhouettes of those inside- there was one standing and the police chief was most likely sitting down at his desk as always. Something felt oddly... Familiar about the way that they were standing- slightly hunched over, with arms at an angle that suggested that their hands were in their pockets.

He knocked on the door and waited to hear the "come in" before slowly turning the knob, pushing it open. His gaze met the police chief first as he bowed respectfully- he could look at the newcomer later. "Chief. Is there anything I can do for you today?"

"Do you recall when you were told you'd be receiving a partner for this case? He's finally arrived in the city, so we figured now was a good time to get you two acquainted. Kurusu, say hello- and be polite about it. He's your senior, after all." Quick to start on business, as always. If the police chief had to warn Kurusu about being polite, Goro couldn't help but worry about how well they'd work together-

 _Wait, what?_

Goro blinked, looking up from his bow and staring at the police chief, his eyes wide. No, there was no way- Kurusu was a very common surname, it had to be a different Kurusu- or did the chief say _Kurosu_ and he didn't hear it right? He hesitated in glancing over to where the third person in the room was standing, but his curiosity forced it out of him. Brown eyes met much darker ones as Goro tried to contain himself. Fluffy black hair, glasses, and that shy little smile that Goro knew hid so, _so_ much more-

 _No, there was no way, it couldn't be-_

"It's a pleasure working with you, Akechi-senpai," Akira Kurusu spoke up softly, giving Goro a polite little bow. His smile was friendly, gentle, but Goro _knew_ there was so much more- questions never answered, racing through both of their minds. The air surrounding them was tense and for a moment Goro was back to who he was two years ago, staring Akira down, jealousy and hate running hot and heady-

No. He had to be cordial now. This was work, and there was no way he'd let a case like _this_ fall through his hands because of his past. Forcing a gentle smile, Goro extended his hand to Akira, trying to keep himself from flinching when the bespectacled boy took it and they shook hands.

"It's... The pleasure is all mine, Kurusu."

 _Shit_.

* * *

aaaaAAAAAA i have no idea how the police work there are like, doors in police places right,

it's not really a boy detectives club if there's two of them. but i wanted to make a reference and i'm the one driving the plane

i haven't written fic in 20000 years please be gentle


	2. Chapter 2

"It's a pleasure working with you, Akechi-senpai."

"It's... The pleasure is all mine, Kurusu."

 _Oh, shit_.

Akira was not someone who was easily surprised. A year of turbulent events ensured he was _very_ good at expecting the unexpected, or keep a straight face when things went downhill. The world could end and he would probably keep his composure- then again, hadn't that already almost happened?

The moment he saw _him_ was no different, but it was like seeing a ghost. Of course, they _knew_ Akechi had survived after seeing him on the news, but could never contact him. The both of them had changed a bit, though that was to be expected in two years- Goro looked much more worn-out, his hair cut a bit shorter: he looked _older_ , less like the charismatic detective prince he'd come to know and more like a hardened police detective. Akira figured he didn't change that much, but he'd grown taller than Goro, despite his slouch.

He'd brought Morgana with him to the station partly out of habit, and the fact that he'd complained until Akira agreed to let him come along. The cat was curled up in his bag (which was ventilated, so he wouldn't suffocate), but at the sound of Goro's voice he began to stir. Of _course_. Akira tried to nudge the bag gently, a silent _please don't make any noise_ , but he saw Goro's gaze flit to his bag for a short moment and a knowing look flash in his eyes.

 _Of course._

"Akechi should have any extra information on this case you need, Kurusu. Here are your copies of his files," The police chief handed Akira a hefty manila folder, his last name written at the top in bold permanent marker. "Take care of him, Akechi. Nijima told me this one can get into a bit of trouble if you leave him to his own devices."

 _You don't know the half of it,_ Akira thought to himself, glancing away to keep himself from smiling any more- though he was sure the chief just took it as him being sheepish.

"Nijima...? Ah, yes sir." Goro kept his composure as well, but the way his eyes darted to Akira was a clear indication he had plenty of questions of his own.

"Good. You two are dismissed. Get to know each other, whatever kids are doing these days, I don't know; just don't get in trouble."

"Thank you sir, I won't let you down."

The moment they were out of the police chief's office, Goro shut the door and turned to Akira, frowning- his usual gentle smile gone in an instant. Akira braced himself for the worst.

"What are you doing here, Kurusu?" His voice was soft, like a hiss, though Akira couldn't feel much venom or bite in his words. If anything, Goro was _confused_ , though there was another lingering waver in his tone that Akira couldn't quite put a name to.

"I don't know, what are _you_ doing here? Last time I checked, you were off the radar, Goro."

"And last time _I_ checked, _you_ were the last person who would ever go into any facet of law enforcement. What are you doing here? Did Sae-san put you up to this? _Why_ did she-"

"The same reason as you, he's investigating the murders," A muffled voice spoke up, as Morgana poked his head out of the bag. Both boys looked at him and shushed him, glancing around uneasily- most people could hear Morgana, but that didn't mean they could _understand_ him. Finding a cat in a police station on Akira's person might seem a bit strange.

"We can't talk here. Listen, we need to go somewhere else to talk about this- just you, me, and Morgana," Akira sighed, gently patting Morgana on the head until he slipped back down into the bag. He tried to put his smile back on, regaining his facade. "But... For now, why don't you show me around, Akechi- _senpai_?"

...

Showing Akira around was... Not as awkward as he'd expected. He was good at conversing with people and getting on their good sides, surprisingly enough- the officers seemed to like him, as did some of the other detectives working at the station. The younger ones held a soft spot for him immediately, as they had when Goro first started; Seta in particular was always friendly, but there was something about him that made it easier to open up to him. Maybe it was the warmth in his silvery eyes, or the way he just had the _feeling_ of a friendly person, if that made sense.

"He smells like cats," Morgana tried to pipe up, his voice muffled. Akira gently elbowed the bag to keep him quiet, and Seta didn't seem to notice- if he did, it was hard to tell. His deadpan could beat Akira's, though Goro supposed being in the police force was a good way to learning the best ways to mask emotions.

For the most part, Goro had been silent when Akira introduced himself to everyone and wandered around to get used to his surroundings, thinking to himself. What had Morgana been talking about? Nijima had been involved in this too? Why did it have to be _Akira_?

Of course, Akira would answer his questions- but he'd have to answer his, as well. Maybe he could get Morgana to take the train home by himself? The last thing he wanted was that cat pestering him too...

He was absorbed in thoughts all day, wasn't he? Goro shook his head, looking at Akira. It was about time for a break- maybe to get his partner (saying that sounded _off_ ) up to speed. Not just with the case, but with everything else as well. Though he _definitely_ wasn't enjoying the prospect of having to remember anything that Akira could use against him, he had to admit, his curiosity was tempting him, and there was work to be done...

...

Goro took him to a cafe near the station. It wasn't Leblanc, but a little shop called the Magic House: a strange name- the staff was stranger. Unlike Leblanc, the air was sickly sweet, mocha powder mixed with cream and the slightest bit of coffee wafting through the little shop and sticking to the back of his throat. Goro had gotten used to the contrast and learned to stomach the sweets they served, not that it was _terrible_ , but sugar on sugar on _sugar_ stopped being enjoyable the older he got, it seemed.

(He liked Leblanc much better, but going back there was out of the question.)

"Akechi-san! Welcome back!" A mess of black and white hair poked up from behind the counter. The barista here had a bedhead to rival Akira's, though his was streaked with white- an "unfortunate dye bottle explosion", according to him. He was definitely around their age, though he looked more disheveled and stressed than the both of them combined. Thick and definitely real glasses perched dangerously on the freckled bridge of his nose, ready to drop and shatter.

"Kobayashi, hello. How's business been?"

"Oh, it's been a little slow, but..."

Their conversation slowly faded out of Akira's focus as he looked around, barely aware of Morgana slowly peeking out of the bag to look up at him. Both of them were used to Leblanc, so the smell was... Strange. Goro seemed to be used to it, and judging by how well he was getting along with the barista, he was a regular here. _Hm_.

Kobayashi continued to chatter as they sat down, Akira watching as he poured them some coffee. It was the same technique he used at Leblanc, but he was definitely shakier about it- not that he could complain, he was the same way when he started. Each coffee came with a couple of ladyfingers which Akira was content to poke at.

Kobayashi's phone buzzed with a cutesy pop song- a timer for something?- and he quickly excused himself to the back. The sweets and such were homemade, according to Goro, and he was the one in charge of everything during his shift. Of course, that meant an awkward silence between the two of them.

Goro sighed, breaking the silence. If Akira wasn't planning on saying anything, he'd talk- might as well get to work. That, and he didn't want to think about explaining himself to Akira- the longer they talked about the case, the less time they had to focus on the past. Gesturing at the manila folder, he waited for Akira to take the contents out and set it on the table.

"You've heard about these cases, right? They're like a group of phantom thieves. Nobody knows how they get in, or get out; what little witnesses we have don't report much out of the ordinary. They're very efficient with murder, though."

Flipping through pages of information, he came across a diagram one of the coroners had written up. The results definitely weren't pristine, but it was a clean murder- a simple slash across the throat, severing the jugular. A note from the analysts that checked fluid samples also noted traces of narcotics in all of the victims, meaning they were most likely drugged at the time of the murder, or shortly before it. While the type of narcotic used was a constant, it was different depending on the situation- apparently it could be ingested, or injected, or inhaled, and the effect would be the same.

"The problem is, there's no footprints, no DNA. Whoever plotted these murders was very... Efficient. There's nothing to trace it to someone else, other than the people in the building at the time, and even then, none of the subjects come up twice. Some of the crime scenes even have these scattered around. There are no prints we can match in the database, of course."

Goro pulled a slip of paper out of the stack, small enough to function as a business card. It was a copy, much flimsier than business cards usually come- the station had made a few to look at. Akira took the card, turning it and holding it up to the light. The card was an array of dark shades of blue, with the symbol of a moon in the middle- unlike the calling cards he used to send, it wasn't as eloquently worded. There weren't words on it at all, just the insignia and varying shades of blue.

"You don't think they're trying to be like you? Their similarities don't stop there."

"Hm. I know, I've seen that much already... But if you're trying to imply that they're using the Metaverse or Palaces or Mementos, they definitely can't. It all disappeared when we..."

Did Goro know about that? Had his world changed along with the rest of society's? Nobody had been able to get in contact with him and tell him it was all over, but they were sure he had figured it out on his own, anyway. Akira watched for a reaction and the silence returned for a moment as Goro seemed to think, but shrugged it off.

"You can't help but contrast the two though. The calling cards, the mysterious deaths... And all of the victims are guilty of crimes, though the severity of their actions doesn't seem to be a limiting factor."

There had been six in the past few months. Goro pulled out their information, letting Akira read over it himself. Drug dealers, murderers, sexual offenders- none of them seemed to have a common thread sans the fact they were criminals. A few of them had their cases televised, if that was anything, but not all of them did. All of them were on parole or probation, working in part-time jobs; their parole officers never saw the murder coming.

"Do you think being televised had anything to do with the murder?"

"Not likely... Other victims didn't receive any spots on television or newspapers. It would be a bit easier if all of them were, though- that would be another solid piece in this puzzle."

"I see."

"We also have a couple of witness accounts of seeing teens lingering around before the murder, which by itself doesn't mean anything. But it keeps reappearing occasionally, which is an indication that whoever they are, they're linked to the case. Still, this entire case is just... Odd."

Akira leaned back in his seat, deep in thought. Goro supposed that was a trait they shared, then. "Have you tried to stake them out yet? When do the calling cards come out?"

"You think we haven't tried that yet? We've never seen anyone strange or new at the time of the murders. The calling cards left at the scene of the crime are usually picked up by the first person that stops by. There's no way to know who placed them there."

"We'll see," Akira's expression changed to the knowing smirk Goro had gotten to know so well as he leaned forwards. Knowing that he had an idea was oddly calming- like Goro knew that he could trust him with it. "Trust me. We'll be the ones to catch them. Just give me some time, I'll have something ready."

"I hope you know what you're doing," Goro sighed out, taking a sip of his own coffee and bracing himself for the taste. Of course he _knew_ that if anyone could solve something like this, it would be Akira, but he didn't want to admit it just yet. "It's not just our careers at stake if we fail. The department's credibility doesn't look very good because of this, too, and people's lives are on the line."

" _Trust me_ , and give me some time to set something up..." Fishing around in his bag and careful not to bump Morgana, who had fallen asleep, Akira grabbed his phone and tapped out a text, though Goro wasn't sure what it was for. "Anyway. It's been two years, I'd like to hear what you've been up to and I'm sure you have a lot of questions. So, let's talk. I promise I'll be truthful about everything if you do the same for me, Goro."

Looking into those dark eyes, curious and _prying_ in the worst way, Goro pressed his lips into a thin line. Was Akira playing at something? There was only one way for him to find out, but at the same time, the last thing he wanted to do was talk about something like that. Of course, he could always play Akira at his own game...

"I'd love to hear about what you've been up to first, Kurusu. I'm sure it's more impressive than what I've been up to."

That _smile_ was going to haunt him. Truthfully, it had been haunting him already, but seeing it again was something else entirely. Akira nodded, adjusting his seat to make himself comfortable, and Goro did the same.

"Well, if you insist..."

* * *

a terrible chapter, but im motivated

my ap us final is on friday and im wasting my time writing persona 5 fanfiction and i think that says a lot about me as a person

i've never talked to a real person in my life and now i don't know what dialogue looks like but

get ready we're gonna do some _reliving memories i guess i forgot where the ending of this one was supposed to lead_


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